


Midori-san@Ganbaranai

by shoyru2257



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, M/M, POV First Person, POV Third Person, friendship triumphs romance by an iceberg slide, midoyuzu/yuzumido is main paring by a landslide, more character tags to be added - Freeform, rated m for adult talk mild violence and cursing oh and sexual tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-11
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-13 14:22:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12985920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shoyru2257/pseuds/shoyru2257
Summary: (Midoyuzu/Yuzumido non-idol AU)Midori enters university, gets turned into a vampire, and becomes an exorcist to liberate himself and his sire from their fates.The hardest thing about all this, perhaps, may be balancing old duties with the new - just because your life decided to take a turn for the supernatural doesn't mean you get to drop out of school and society, unfortunately.(story written with call-outs to Monogatari series and Sasami-san@Ganbaranai)





	1. Prologue

_“Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show.”_

_\-- Charles Dickens, David Copperfield_

This is a favorite quote of mine. I haven’t read the book myself though, so I don't know if I’ve been citing it appropriately or not; maybe Dickens has been rolling in his grave for awhile now.

Sorry if that’s true, Dickens - but still, thanks. Your quote helped changed my life for the better, namely during the time Yuzuru-san calls the “Hardcore Age”.

(...Someone help him please.)

Anyway, the Hardcore Age. Honestly speaking, it was  _hell._

I was doing lots of cool stuff, sure. Things I never thought would be possible for me - being useful, becoming friends with the best people ever, getting regular exercise, meeting Yuzuru-san.

It wasn’t easy. “What am I doing with my life” - the question I’d struggled with since (insert single digit number here) years of age took on a whole new meaning then. Well, eventually I’d found my answer and learned how to get over myself. Thought I could move on to a new phase in life - except just like how you can’t be a spendthrift with an hourly wage of 800  _yen_ and expect your bills to pay themselves, you can’t walk away free of charge when you’ve been stripped of as much humanity as I have. It’s just that the price tag was shown to us only now, years after my life regained some sense of order and normality.

This and that happened following the revelation, and ultimately, I chose to retake the mantle of a God.

I wasn’t forced to. I knew what I was getting myself into. I don’t bemoan anyone, anything, or life itself for placing me in that situation.

However… I can’t really say I made my decision without regret, either.

Shinobu-kun, Tetora-kun, Hinata-kun, Yuuta-kun, Sora-kun, Tomoya-kun, Sakuma-san, Shinkai-san, Morisawa-senpai, Mikejima-senpai, Kiryu-senpai, Tsukinaga-senpai, Hibiki-senpai, Anzu-senpai, Akehoshi-senpai, Sakasaki-senpai, and all the others.

And of course, Yuzuru-san.

This isn’t a work of fiction - these are real people, their decisions so incredibly human. Which is basically a euphemism for ‘they mcfucking did whatever the fuck they wanted to do’ - but that resolution to be the masters of their own fates, and the resilience they demonstrated (and still do) when life did (does) its damnedest to bring them down, I think, demands respect.

I think Dickens’s heroes are people like them. They saved themselves, and they saved me. The Hardcore Age was hell - but through my misfortune, I was able to meet those heroes and start thinking “hey, maybe life isn’t such a shithole after all”.

It’s an experience worth remembering.

So if there’s one thing I don’t like about this whole God ordeal, it’s that I’ll be forgetting those times.

According to Shinkai-senpai, the Gods’ previous hosts and I will be wiped of our memories involving Them - for me, that’ll be my memories of both the Hardcore Age and this present year, since they have  _everything_ to do with the Gods.

It’s pretty frustrating to know this now, obviously, but I’m not my biggest concern. After all, I’m not the one who’ll suffer when I can’t remember who or what there is to miss.

The people I’ll be leaving behind will.

I’m not so cocky as to say  _everyone_ will care that I’m gone. But for those who do - and, well, for the current me, I guess - I want to remember. I want to remember the ones I’d once held dear and our times together.

So with everyone’s permission, I’ve decided to write our story down.

I’m bad with words. My memory isn’t flawless.

Maybe you don't share my sentiments or simply don't care, Future Takamine Midori.

I’m only speaking for myself when I say I want to remember. It’s more than okay if you don't - you are your own person, after all. Do as you wish. I wrote this to let you know that these kinds of things happened before, not to brainwash you into becoming "this” Takamine Midori. You can just think of this as a work of realistic fiction rather than a script or instruction manual.

You don't even have to finish reading, if it makes you uncomfortable. No pressure.

But for what you will read… regardless of your intentions, I hope you'll enjoy it more than I did at the time.

 

\----

 

“Midori-san has come a long way.”

“Huh?” Midori's fingers faltered on the keyboard for a moment. “...You're not reading this, are you?”

“You know the answer to that.”

“Right… well, uh, it's not like the bar pussy me set was super high or anything. Anyway, I’m almost done, so please stop trying to validate your existence.”

Flick. Flick. Flick.

“What the- oh. Come on, what did the lights ever do to you?” After wrapping up the last paragraph, he sent his Mac to hibernation. “Sorry, Hinata-kun. I’ll do your part tomorrow, since a  _certain_ three-year-old thinks I’m, quote unquote, being too distracting for him to sleep.”

Irony oozed from that sentence, yes, but no entendre at all; no siree. Charles Dickens held copyright over a gamebreaker, and so did Fushimi Yuzuru - more specifically, a complaint that ended the era of cuddle sleeping and brought upon the more innovative concept of “bed-sharing roommates”:

_"‘Please return to me the time I wasted attempting to have you compromise in your sleep and the time it took for my arms and legs to regain feeling each following morning’ - is what I would like to ask, but Midori-san will never be able to pay off his debt with our current arrangements; therefore, I have no choice but to eliminate the source of all evil.”_

_\-- Fushimi Yuzuru, on sleep and distracting bed partners_

(As if spewing out that long string of words without so much as a breath in between took up all the energy he had, Yuzuru was out like a log again in seconds - after banishing Midori’s sorry ass from his side of the bed, that was.)

Learning by analogy was a must; if Yuzuru said you were a distraction, you were a distraction in the most literal sense of the word - the one that spelled doom. Never,  _ever_ test the limits of someone who only slept an average of less than four hours a day, especially when they finally had a day off. Otherwise, it was pay up or be henpecked into paying.

Midori stopped Yuzuru from maltreating the light switch. The room stayed dark, save for the glow of various electronics and the thin filament of moonlight that shone through the gap in the curtains. “Sleep?”

“Sleep.” Yuzuru threw the blankets over them both as Midori sank into the mattress.

By some miracle, today was exempt from the usual (brutal) sleep routine - and in two different ways, at that. One, six hours of being dead to the world was no longer a pipe dream for Yuzuru. Two, Midori had regained his spot on Yuzuru’s side of the bed. Number two had the added bonus of being permanent.

After all, it wasn’t like he could body slam the guts out of the guy in his sleep when sleep would no longer come to him.

“Incidentally.” Yuzuru spoke again, because of course he still had more to say. “My earlier compliment was actually aimed toward Midori-san’s improved typewriter function. In comparison to the days we once studied together…”

“You can stop there, thanks.” Even as he rolled his eyes in exasperation (and reflex; those who knew Yuzuru long and well enough definitely understood what he was talking about), fingers lightly caressed a thin - but definitely present - mark on the inside of Yuzuru’s lower arm, the sole blemish that marred otherwise flawless skin.

The vestige of an injury Yuzuru bore for his sake.

The romantic ending of that particular instance was Midori being dragged into grad school prep group meets for nearly a whole Goddamn year, serving as a blood-and-sweat labourer - correction, Yuzuru-san’s happy-to-help secretary _-_ as the then to-be entrepreneur put his liver on the line to further his education (read: descent into madness). Co-star university homework completion was not to be forgotten either, of which included - but was most definitely not limited to, oh no - English, more English, punching in reports so dizzying and boundless they would put a dazzle of zebras to shame, and hunting for typos long enough to almost make his eyeballs roll straight out of their sockets.

He sincerely hoped that there wouldn't be a next time - no more Advents, no more people getting hurt for his sake.

“Midori-san is kind.”

A hand covered his, gently pushing it and still-vivid memories of the past aside, giving him something more substantial, more  _now_ to hold on to as Yuzuru laced their fingers together.

“You needn't worry. Something like risking my life for you - I won't do it again. I no longer possess the prowess to do so, and I have a promise I intend on keeping.”

Yuzuru understood. Ah, he truly was blessed.

“However, Midori-san.” A finger traced the line of Midori’s jaw. “I was the one who did all the brainwork back then, but have you ever heard me bemoan my existence? Conversely, you-” the finger jabbed into the underside of his chin, forcing his head slightly upward, “-only had to write what you yourself volunteered to. Please enlighten me as to what there is to be so spiteful toward.”

“I volunteered to help you  _carry_   _stuff_ , not copy by ear solutions to a hundred calculus problems a day and several-thousand-something choose twenty-six letters a week!”

“Twenty-six to the power of several-thousand-something,” Yuzuru corrected.

His eyeballs really  _would_ roll out of bounds one of these days.

Actually, they’d just hop back in again seconds later, with a bonus of renewed 1.0 eyesight. (The ‘immortal’ part of his job description wasn’t there for show.)

But still.

Before Yuzuru could go on a harangue of cursed mathematical jargon, Midori scooted down to kiss him.

He really did mean for it to be one(1) kiss, honest to Himself - but damn, work and mediating stupid brawls and hospital visits and relationship problems(not theirs) meant no time for just  _them_. “Just _them_ ” meaning no distress, no slightly less upsetting stress, and no clothes… but now was probably not the best time for the last desire to take shape.

"Was that really necessary?”

Mirth and fuchsia made such an enticing combination. Midori had to look away. “...I could ask you the same."

"I asked first, didn't I? Although I suppose it won't matter, since I’ll be revoking my inquiry.” Yuzuru rolled over and up to straddle Midori’s lap.

“Surely Kami-sama will forgive this lowly worshiper for changing his mind.”

 _Think with the head up there_ , Midori chided himself, trying not to squirm as Yuzuru picked at the drawstring of his sweats. The silver of Yuzuru’s ring winked at him, taunting as its owner was. “Uh, you have work in like eight or seven hours?"

The knot loosened in one place and tightened in another.

"A half hour for preparation, one for transit, six point five for actual off time. Doing a two-four point five split still leaves me in the green sleep-wise, so I don’t see a problem there. Midori-san can at least handle calculations of this level… yes?”

Yuzuru’s gaze flickered up, burning straight into his soul - and Midori was pinning him back to the bed, Yuzuru letting out a breathy laugh at being manhandled.

“Please be gentle with me, Kami-sama.”

“I’ll consider that for round two.”

Now, the Gods of this world could be many things - omnipotent immortals, writers, denizens of day and night, LASIK surgeons, lovers.

Also, choice-deprived.

“ _Meteoranger zenshin zenkai! Meteoranger sono iro wo-”_

Wandering hands froze in their tracks. Midori and Yuzuru exchanged a glance, then turned their heads toward the phone that was blaring out the chorus of  _Tenka Muteki☆Meteor Ranger!._

“Did it always use to call Midori-san out like that.” The pH value of Yuzuru’s tone took a turn for the negative.

“That’s... a new function - uh, for work, not for, y’know,  _that_. I'm sure it didn’t go off on… purpose…haha...” At least  _someone_ would be getting something good out of this after Midori informed him that the new SNS feature worked swimmingly. Woot.

“Well, don’t let me stop you. Do your best out there, hero.”

Midori let himself be pushed off. Sliding off the bed reluctantly, he closed the app blaring out his ringtone, pocketing his phone and keys. “Hero, huh.”

“But of course.”

Midori paused in the middle of putting on his shoes - placed by the floor-to-ceiling windows for this purpose. He raised his head to look at Yuzuru, who appeared ready for sleep again as if the attempted bed-rolling did not just happen.

“A villain you may be in the eyes of the masses; however, I exalt the Midori-san who does what no one wants to do yet must be done, and even after all that has happened, still allows someone like me to stay by his side.”

“...Yuzuru-san’s logic is as avant-garde as ever.”

“If you have time to be embarrassed, get moving. And do bring a jacket with you - anything can catch a cold if it resides in a mortal body, Kami-sama.”

Midori caught the tossed article of clothing with a smirk. “Thanks.” For everything, he meant. _“_ Good night, human.”

Parting the curtains, he slid the doors open-

-and jumped.

Before the eleven-story plummet could reduce him to a splatter against the asphalt below, Midori drew upon the power of his God. He rebounded on a perfectly-trimmed tree - with a silent apology to their community's gardener as foreign leaves were strewn across the lawn - and took to walls and rooftops of high-rise buildings.

As he sprinted and leapt through the night, the app that had pulled him out of his warm bed and into the blistering world of chaos reacted to his power. The logo of Anima Crossing flashed on his screen, followed by a single line of text.

_1 message request. Accept?_

_“Good evening, Takamine-kun.”_ The voice of Sakuma Rei sounded from the receiver.  _“Ah, Natsume-kun, am I operating this correctly? Talk how you would with a normal phone? Unfortunately, I am quite lacking in that kind of experience- talk to him, not you? Are you sure he can hear me? Is that so, Takamine-kun?”_

Midori stifled the laugh that threatened to creep its way out of his throat. “Good evening, Sakuma-san.”

 _“Ah, this works! Excellent.”_ Rustling came from the other end of the phone - dossiers being shuffled, probably.  _“Firstly, my apologies for disturbing Fushimi-kun's sleep to have you rendezvous with another man.”_

“Eh, he’ll live. So, what’s up?”

Long time no business - except now he was going to be destroying the peace he once sought to protect.

However, even if the whole of Japan were to be submerged in pandemonium yet again, he would see to it that one small plot of land remained an undisturbed haven.

(An undisturbed haven - an insoluble regret.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> → next chapter: Midori Vampire


	2. Midori Vampire

**Term: N/A (pre-freshman)**

**Season: Spring**

**Location: Takamine Residence**

 

It all started with a phone call.

"Yo, Takamine! Sorry, but I’ve got some, uh, not so good news for you, hahaha! See, I told Sena the other day - you remember Sena, right? Cool, okay - that you were gonna bunk with me, and he was all 'Whaaat, Chia-kun. You're sharing a place with someone else?'

"'Yeah!' I said.

"'Sharing. A place. With someone. Else.' He said.

"Okay, time out! See, Sena's real smart - y’know, med student - so he usually remembers whatever he wants to remember, and he hates having to repeat himself to the point where he once dumped my coke on the third guy who asked us where Academic Affairs was back during the start of our senior year in high school, so it wouldn't make sense that he'd repeat himself now, yeah? Wait, I think that was actually because the poor kid didn't use  _ keigo  _ or something.

“Aaanyway! So I told Sena, 'Yeah! My dear junior from Yumenosaki needed me, so I welcomed him with open arms!'

"'Dear. Junior.' He said.

“‘Well, yeah! There something wrong?’ I said.

"'It's nothing. Nooothing at all, because get this, Morisawa Chiaki, I absolutely, positively, honest to god don't care. Go ahead, wake and eat and hit the hay together, ‘cause guess what? I don’t. Fucking. Care!' He said. I was hella confused.

"But then it clicked! 'Nooo, Sena! Takamine's gonna sleep on the spare bed!' I said.

"' _ Haaah _ ? You, you’re- ugh, just. Why are you bunking with a shitty brat who hasn’t kept in touch with you for two years?’ He said.

“Well, you know me, Takamine - I can't  _ not  _ help someone in need, especially a comrade! I’d invited Sena to come live with me before when  _ he  _ needed a place to stay. Last semester when we went to CoCo Ichibanya, in fact!

"That’s what I told him - not word for word, but eh. ‘No spare bed.' Said he.

"'No spare bed?' Said I. But then I remembered what we were talking about - you, Takamine! I tried to ask him about you, but he just said, ‘Dorm, ten o'clock. Drive. Don't be late.' He hung up on me after that. When I went to their dorm today, Sena was waiting at our usual spot with his luggage in tow - well, I was the one who was doing the towing, ahaha!

“‘You’re not hot in that?’ I asked. I mean, he swears by the AC! It was a legit question, okay! But he just gave me the ‘so~annoying’ look, and- ahaha, sorry, back to the point! Right, so right now I'm waiting outside the Sena place while he gets the rest of his stuff. I’ll have something to fill those closets with now, so that’s cool, I guess.

"I  _ did _ plead your case for you, Takamine, so don’t be too pissed! Sena insisted! 'But Taka-something  _ what _ ? Destroying contracts and shit - been there, done that. It’s no big deal. Plus Chia-kun originally asked me - ever heard of first come, first serve? Tell Kouhai-kun I wish him good luck finding a place to stay this close to orientation~' He said.

“Senpai’s sorry for letting you down, Takamine! I’ll make it up to you sometime, anytime - just say the word and I’ll come sailing through your window! But hey, not all hope is lost! I asked Kanata - you remember Kanata, right? Doing great, Takamine -  since for some reason he’s been renting rooms to people, and bingo! Kanata’s place is pretty… how do I put it? I don’t mean to be mean, but it’s like seeing poverty and wealth meshed together in one picture, Kanata’s hub worlds apart from the others. Yet somehow they’re still next door neighbors. You’ll like it, trust me!

“Oh, Sena’s back! Hey Sena, I was just talking to the guy you dehome- hey, you gotta stock up on carbohydrates now if you don't want ‘em on your dinner plate, doc’s orders! Oh, right - sorry Takamine, you still have Kanata’s number? Eh, you never got it? Alright, it’s…

“Nagumo and Sengoku - your fellow tenants - are good kids, and they’ll be going to the same university as you, so you get along with them- mm,  _ nikudon _ , I guess? Today’s a meat day! I was thinking something along the lines of fried chicken, but it’s Sena I’m having lunch with! Oh, see you at school, Takamine! Bye!

“Waitwaitwaaait, one more thing! Don’t go around telling people Kanata’s the guy renting rooms to y’all, alright? Why, I dunno. He says, I tell! Right, I’m really done this time! Seeya soon, Takamine!”

_ Boop. Boop. Boop. _

_ Farewell, body bag,  _ I thought.  _ Farewell, sea - more specifically, my chance of being tossed into the ocean by Morisawa-senpai's psycho boyfriend. _

The ugly scrawl of numbers jotted onto my notebook called me back to the harsh reality. I’d had eighteen years to get used to the quality of my life, sure, but was it really that hard for the RNG gods to land me a dorm room? Why did I have to go through the awkward experience of talking to a senior who probably doesn't remember me, I wondered. And to make things worse, the neighbors forgot to close the window _again_ when cooking.

They were good cooks. That’s not something to feel fortunate toward, especially when you’ve decided to forgo breakfast - guess I only have myself to blame for that, though.

A few minutes later, the RNG god’s mind were still set in stone, and the smell of teriyaki chicken was not becoming less appetizing (thanks for putting KFC into my thoughts, Morisawa-senpai), but I found out some not-so-bad(?) things:

  1. Shinkai-san - whom I called _senpai_ back then, so I’ll be using that from now on - still knew who I was.
  2. I wouldn’t have to be a hobo. Emphasis on the “might” - this _is_ my life we’re talking about, after all.



“Chiaki told me about your 'circumstance’...” Shinkai-senpai said. “Midori can come over any time today~”

 

\----

 

**Location: The Stone Age**

 

Which is how Mom and I came to be at Shinkai-senpai’s place - the Stone Age - roughly an hour later. How we realized what Morisawa-senpai meant by “poverty and wealth meshed together in one picture”.

The Stone Age looked like your typical downtown fancy apartment complex, albeit sized down and in this non-metropolitan area. It was the only modern-looking building in the area; the rest seemed as if they’d been built from crappy material by people at least two generations older than me.

“My… well, if Midori-kun really does want to live here…I’ll talk it over with your father, okay?” Mom had a sort of helpless smile on her face. She wasn't being a drama queen here - if you could tell books by their covers, well, the Stone Age screamed mortgage. For a working-class family like mine, it wouldn't have been our go-to for rental houses.

The front door with its tinted windows creaked (yes,  _ creaked _ ) open, and the aqua blue head of Shinkai Kanata-senpai popped out. “Long time no see, Midori… oh…?” The trademark tuff of hair that would not settle down twitched curiously. I’ll never understand how it does that, because I’m not believing the theory of it having nerves of its own.

Mom gave Shinkai-senpai a slight bow. “Hello, I’m his mother. Thank you for having us today… Shinkai-kun, right?”

Shinkai-senpai nodded once in return, slowly. “Yes… Follow me, please~” It was like Mom just announced that she came from Mars or something, the way Shinkai-senpai gawked at her- well, not really  _ gawked _ , per se, because that’s not really an expression I associate with him, but… okay, gawked.

We passed the  _ genkan  _ after leaving our shoes in the  _ getabako,  _ giving me __ a  flashback of Yumenosaki - though this could apply to any other school, really, what with how many cubbyholes there were. The house slipper army was probably meant to accommodate a genealogy's worth of people, and I couldn't help wondering how I would live if one of the tenants decided they liked holding parties there. Hopefully they thought the sophisticated profile the interior Stone Age cast was too stuffy for their tastes.

Whoever called the shots for the main lobby’s decor had a meticulous eye for design. Marble chequered like a chessboard and polished to a shine lay beneath us, the dimmed lighting muting the contrast somewhat. To the right, a set of beige, textured, tufted wingback sofas and a single matching settee formed a U-shape, surrounding the large, rectangular coffee table with a see-through top and tapered feet on three sides. A chandelier dangled high above what I assumed to be the sitting room portion of the lobby; another cascaded down the left side of the room, the stairway spiraling around it and up toward the upper level of the mezzanine.

“Then, I’ll be taking Midori on a tour~” Shinkai-senpai told Mom after we’d seen enough of the lobby. “Does Auntie want to come…?”

Mom refused politely. “I’ll be staying down here, but thank you. Midori-kun, as long as you’ve thought things through, Papa and I will support you, okay?”

“Okay.” There wasn't really much else I could have said, honestly.

“Shi~no~bu~” Shinkai-senpai cupped his hands, calling down the hallway next to the staircase. “Please pour Auntie some tea and bring out the snacks~”

A clatter answered Shinkai-senpai’s request. “Yes! I, I will do my best, Shinkai-dono!”

“Let's go, Midori~” We headed upstairs; Shinkai-senpai in front, me a few steps behind. Decor-wise, there really wasn't much to speak of - it was as if the designer just gave up after one floor of tedious planning or something. It was still spotlessly clean, though, and I guess that's all that matters.

“The second floor is quite lively~ Only one room left…” Shinkai-senpai began his introduction mid-climb. “Aside from that, there is Shinobu… Tetora... our ‘special case’…”

_ Yeah, no _ , I thought _. _ People and suspicious people - not my ideal standards of living. “Shinkai-senpai said there’s a third floor, right...?” Unlike the second floor, the third floor was almost completely cut off from the rest of the building. More privacy came with higher stories, I guessed.

“Hm… upstairs is… also a 'special case’... Though the tenants are not usually at home, so maybe Midori will like it better there...maybe, just maybe...” Shinkai-senpai paused on the top step, green eyes unusually bright in the dim lighting. “Shall we, then…?”

Seeking peace and quiet, I nodded, and we continued our trek upward. The Takamine residence only has one flight of stairs, so to me, climbing a second, steeper one was essentially torture. What little vertical exercise I’d gotten over the break was pretty much limited to lifting boxes, each heavier than the next - I’m not exaggerating when I say that. My poor back.

That little fact, however, was not what made me regret my decision.

A guy came charging at us, crying, “Shinkai-donooooo! I have retuuurned!”

Then a slipper sailed through the air, pummeling the assailant in the gut.

“ _ Gah!” _

Croaking out his dying word, the assailant crumpled to the floor in a heap of _yukata_ and dark, billowing hair. Thankfully, the sword he had waved in… greeting, I guess - clattered to the ground a few centimeters away from him, not  _ in  _ him.

“‘Ryusei Chop’… was that right, Chiaki…?” Shinkai-senpai was just as cheerful as ever. “Hehe… anyway, let us continue our third-floor tour…”

“I’ll take the second floor,  _ senpai _ .” I said.

Shinkai-senpai forgot to retrieve his slipper when we went back downstairs.

“Here we go~” The lock sounding with a click, he pushed the door open for me.

I don’t really remember the following part well, but I’ll write what I can.

Immediately after Shinkai-senpai did his thing, I was yanked inward by an unknown force.

The burning sensation in my arm might have had something to do with the gross popping sound that came from my shoulder. Shinkai-senpai might have made an exclamation of surprise. The door might have slammed shut, sentencing me to certain fate within the vortex of darkness.

I didn’t get to confirm any of that, for perception of the outside world was lost to me as a voice hissed into my ear.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

I saw a pair of crimson, glowing ones.

Then something sharp plunged deep into my neck, and pain saturated my world.

 

\----

 

When I woke, it was to some mantra.

“Repent, stupid vampire~ Repent, stupid vampire~”

That was the first thing I noticed as I lifted myself off the ground. The second was that I felt more awake than I could ever remember feeling. It was like I’d just slept one of those good sleeps only elementary and maybe middle schoolers could get.

The third - it was completely dark. No light peeking through the curtains of the window - no windows at all. Just me, and the suffocating darkness.

“Be calm, Midori...” Shinkai-senpai’s presence had never been more comforting before - I almost wanted to hug him. “We are currently within a ' _ kekkai _ ’... which, in this moment is the safest place you can be… Here... this is your ‘contract’~”

An A4 sheet of paper with a bigass wall of text was waved in front of my face.

I took it, stared blankly at it, not actually reading it. “C, contract? I was… killed, right. So you gotta sign an indenture before going to hell, huh...”

I  _ was _ always expressing my desire to die, but now that death was actually upon me, I thought…

Maybe I shouldn’t have been so problematic.

I should have helped around the house more.

I shouldn’t have relegated Kidoairaku to limbo.

I should have told Morisawa-senpai the truth about me.

“Midori was killed...?” Shinkai-senpai’s voice held a hint of confusion. “Ah, you are talking about Rei…”

His slippered foot rose off the floor to grind none too gently down onto a stick of wood, one of two that formed a cross embedded beside a curly black mop.

The mop writhed. “Urgh.”

I’ll admit I screamed. I’d just noticed it was there, after all.

“It” being a living, breathing, facedown person.

A hand clapped over my mouth. “Please, not so loud… I will explain everything to Midori. I would appreciate it if you listened till the end… without interrupting. Nod once if you understand.”

I did as I was told. Shinkai-senpai still had one more slipper to spare, after all.

I realized that the cross was made out of disposable chopsticks.

“Thank you...” The hand was removed from my mouth, and Shinkai-senpai stepped back - onto Mop Head. “Now… we’ll start with Midori first. Midori is alive, alive and well… very well, since you were just bitten and turned by a vampire...”

I don’t know what Shinkai-senpai saw on my face, but it made him sigh and shake his head. “Of course Midori doesn’t believe me…”

The slippered foot changed its target, this time shaking Mop Head’s head left and right none too gently. “Wake up, Rei… your turn...”

Mop Head dislodged Shinkai-senpai’s foot from their head, slumping into a sitting position. “Ah, Shinkai-kun,” he whined. “Foot on floor, thank you. That actually hurt.”

“It was supposed to… Rei has done the ‘nigh unforgivable’, after all…”

“Yes... Well, good morning, Takamine Midori-kun. My name is Sakuma Rei. It would appear that the three of us, Shinkai-kun included, have much to discuss.”

Mop Head’s - Sakuma-san’s - mop head covered most of his face, but unmissable were eyes colored a true red. As their owner yawned widely, they seemed about to pool over with fresh blood. My impressionist, standoffish traitor of a brain made a single footnote:  _ vampire. _

Cold from the wall crept up my back - there was nowhere else to run.

The voices were nearly reduced to background noise by my brain’s mess. “Rei, Midori does not believe you either...”

“We may have to fall back on more drastic measures, then. I don't want to hurt you any more than I already have, but I believe it is in all our best interests to not keep the lady downstairs waiting for too long.”

Slowly, Sakuma-san drew himself up to his full height.

And  _ transformed. _

Natural elegance and regality settled into the line of his back, shoulders, the angle of his head and neck, the set of his jaw; previously limp, slipper-tousled hair now an inky, glossy halo framing his face, akin to silhouetted, sinewy limbs of winterbare trees; the lethargy settled in the depths of those crimson eyes cast away to reveal a mellow, steadfast resignation.

(Trying too hard, you say? Why don’t  _ you  _ try - and fail horribly - to capture Sakuma Rei on paper.)

The man lifted a pale, slender finger - and that was all I saw at that plane of vision. 

My body moved as if on autopilot, legs folding under my ass, stomach digging into my knees, fingers side by side and palms flat against the floor.

Against my will, I had prostrated myself before the self-proclaimed vampire.

Also, there was a burning sensation at my neck. My instinct was to reach up and scratch it, but I quickly found out that I couldn't.

“Due to your enhanced regeneration abilities, the flesh-and-bone wounds of my making has since healed completely. The effect of the flesh wound remains, however.” the vampire explained. “Also, to answer the question currently prominent in your thoughts - indeed. As your ‘sire’, I can control each action, perceive every sensation, hear each thought that you do and have. Now, if we’re clear on that, please allow me to begin my tale with a reintroduction.”

It was not a suggestion as his wording implied; nuance defined the border between mere storytelling and the demand for subservience.

“I am Sakuma Rei, a vampire who has fallen from grace. A vampire not all that different from mankind’s image of us - bloodthirsty, heliophobic, possessing strength that could give dear Hercules a run back to Alcmene’s womb. Inhuman. Only the Gods themselves rank above us in the hierarchy of anima.

“Having a penchant for what I suppose one could call entertainment, however, we oftentimes choose to mingle with the other races. High class vampires such as my former self do this quite well - that is, they can disguise the aforementioned giveaway characteristics with relative ease, should they choose to do so. As I am now… not so much. It was melancholy resulting from heartbreak that I ingested, reverting me back to this primitive state; thus, it is that particular subsistence which tempts me into succumbing to my carnal desires. In this state of weakness, one who so appealed to my palate passed me by.

“I’m referring to you, Takamine Midori. I was unable to resist you, despite the fact that I should have. Despite knowing the consequences - for me, it was reducing the fruit of my cultivation to nothing. For you, it was - is - becoming my familiar. This allows me to do what I have mentioned before… as I’m sure you have picked up on.”

The moment he said that last sentence, my head lowered until it was touching the floor, once again without my permission.

Then suddenly, my body went slack. I tried moving my left arm back - and it worked. I eased into a more ergonomic sitting position. After scrambling the fuck away from Sakuma-san, that was - or at least that was my intent. The wall was still a thing behind me.

“I’ve already released my control on you, which can be toggled on and off like a switch, as you’ve experienced just now. I won’t infringe your autonomy or privacy without your consent from here on, though, so you needn’t worry about that. Now...”

Sakuma-san knelt before me, and it slowly dawned on me as to what the grim resolution in his gaze implied. “I apologize. I will take full responsibility for my actions. Whatever help I may provide toward the problems resulting from your new predicament, it is yours.”

“I am sorry too, Midori.” Shinkai-senpai joined us on the floor with a truly remorseful expression. Even the tuft of hair appeared more downcast than usual. “I did not expect Rei would be here… I gave him a harsh beating already, but you can exact revenge on us however you wish.”

“Before doing that, however, I suggest you consider using us to help regain your humanity,” Sakuma-san added. “However, I regret to inform that it is not the simplest of ordeals.”

“Become an exorcist, Midori.” Shinkai-senpai said. “Bring anima to justice… accumulate merits to wipe away the chaos that now taints your soul… after some time and effort, you will be able to live life on your own terms…”

I’d felt that pain in my neck, been controlled like a puppet, heard a story interwoven with far too much detail that it was impossible to be a tool of a con artist’s trade.

_ Or was it _ , I wondered. A part of me still wanted to believe I hadn’t just uncovered a facet of the world best left hidden, hadn’t just gotten my life totally  _ wrecked  _ by some  _ chuuni  _ who couldn’t keep his fucking canines to himself.

I clung to it. I mean, fight  _ youkai  _ like Abe no Seimei? Shoot  _ danmaku  _ like Hakurei Reimu and Kirisame Marisa? Who, Takamine Midori, age 18, starting school at a shit university in two weeks, pursuing a shit major as the result of a slip-up, sick and tired as hell of his shit life?

That kind of exciting life better suited the protagonist of some second rate light novel, or a weirdo who wanted to be a cliche storybook hero.

Someone like Morisawa-senpai.

I wondered if he knew about the whole ghostbuster business - he and Shinkai-senpai were pretty close, as far as I knew. If he did, it would be hard to trust anything ever again, I figured.

But if he didn’t...

_ Morisawa-senpai’s dream has been right under his nose this entire time… and I’ll have a chance to live it,  _ I realized.

“...I’ll never be normal if I don’t?” I asked.

“Your humanity shall forever be lost, as well as the prospect of a placid, uneventful life,” Sakuma-san said. “Does that answer your question?”

“Could the job kill me?”

“In Midori’s current body…? That is unlikely… but Midori will still be able to feel pain…” Shinkai-senpai trailed off, as if he’d realized he wasn't exactly being helpful. “Rei and I will pull some strings to make Midori's job easier, though…”

_What am I asking_ , I wondered in numb disbelief. It was like…

...Like I was actually going to  _ accept their proposal. _

The rational, objective part of my brain informed me that, hard to accept as it was, I didn't really have a choice.

_Moreover_ , the psychotic part added, _there's that._

\-- _“Takamine! Takamine! Ta. Ka. Mi. Ne! I did it! I did the thing! Y’know,_ that _! ” _

I’d known what Morisawa-senpai was talking about. I wished I didn't. I wished he hadn't kept rubbing it in my face.

\-- _“Okay, so I guess I_ do  _kinda feel like an ass. Sorry, Tsukinaga, Sakuma. Sorry for listening to me rant, Takamine. But I… I think we’ve both waited long enough for this.” Morisawa-senpai smiled. It was a smile reserved only for “him”._

That was the only one of Morisawa’s smiles I was sure I never wanted to see.

\-- _“So, yeah. I. Confessed to Sena, and he accepted!”_

The reminiscence ended, and I made my decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> → next chapter: Orientation


End file.
